"Let’s make a small room on the roof...he can stay there.” 2 Kings 4:10 

Today's assignment: Read 2 Kings 4:8-37. It's a fascinating story that's worth delving into.

A woman in Shunem is inspired to ask her husband to build a room on their roof. This way, whenever the prophet Elisha travels by, he and his assistant will have a place to stay. Elisha is grateful and wants to know how he can repay her. She doesn't really want anything. Knowing she can't have a child, Elisha offers to ask God to give her a son. This deeply touches her. She basically says, "Don't promise what you can't provide! Don't tease me."

But she does have a son. She's overjoyed. Her act of making room resulted in a blessing beyond her imagination.

However, the story takes a turn. Later, her son, now a boy, falls ill. It sounds like a brain hemorrhage, tumor, or concussion. He dies. The woman becomes angry with the prophet. She received a blessing but now it's worse. She wishes she had never opened her heart to the dream.

So, the prophet comes again. He goes into the upper room (the one the couple built for him), lies on the boy, and breathes into him. The boy comes back to life, and the woman is overjoyed.

The End.

Now, what do you make of this story? What does it say about making room? It can lead to blessings, but it doesn't spare us from future pain or problems. Making room for God can engage us in an unfolding story of God's goodness, life's heartaches, and miraculous things.

For me, this story shows that we choose whether to make room for God in our lives. And if we do, it usually means making room for others. It doesn't spare us life's hard realities, but it opens us up to God's possibilities.

Read the story for yourself and see what you discover.

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